Sounds of sporadic shelling could be heard into the night Friday in Sudan’s capital, despite renewed cease-fire declarations from Sudan’s military and a rival paramilitary force locked in heavy clashes for the past seven days.
Neither side had immediate comment on an offer from Kenyan President William Ruto to mediate the conflict, which has killed hundreds and prompted thousands of Khartoum residents to flee the city.
The Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces both announced they would honor a 72-hour cease-fire beginning Friday to mark the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
“The truce coincides with the blessed Eid al-Fitr … to open humanitarian corridors to evacuate citizens and give them the opportunity to greet their families,” the RSF said in a statement.
However, artillery fire was heard throughout the day and into the night in Khartoum, raising questions about whether the declared truce would fail, as have several others this week.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who spoke to the heads of both military factions this week, urged the combatants to abide by the truce.
“I reiterate my call on both sides to pause the fighting to allow civilians to take care of themselves and their families, to permit full and unimpeded humanitarian access, and to enable all civilians, including diplomatic personnel, to reach safety,” he said in a statement Friday.
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that no decision had been made about whether to evacuate diplomatic personnel from Sudan, but that the United States was preparing for such action in case it becomes necessary.
At least 413 people have been killed in the power struggle between the two previously allied leaders of the ruling military junta, Burhan and Dagalo, according to the World Health Organization.
The group said that thousands more have been injured in the fighting, and that as many as 20,000 people have fled Sudan to neighboring Chad.
At least five aid workers were among the dead, including three from the World Food Program, which suspended operations in Sudan. On Friday, an aid worker with the International Organization for Migration was killed in the city of El Obeid, according to Reuters. The worker was driving his family to safety when his vehicle was caught in the crossfire.
Alyona Synenko, the East Africa regional spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross, called the latest aid worker’s death “extremely disturbing news and very concerning and saddening for the humanitarian community.”
